The End Of The AMSOIL Great American CT Tour

Mission completed. The AMSOIL Great American Circle Track Tour of the U.S. is done. For those new to the story, we came up with the idea of touring the country and visiting racetracks in a motorhome. We secured a great major sponsor and associate sponsors who funded the project and then we went out and did it. This is something we have never heard of a magazine doing before, even very large circulation magazines, so there was some groundbreaking going on here.

I came up with the idea back in late 2009. Jim Foos, our senior publisher, cut the deal with the sponsor, and the company backed the plan and bought a fine motorhome. We wrapped it in a cool flaming design and we were off to the races, literally.

The following is a list of the things we saw that we liked as well as a list of the things we didn’t like. Remember that we verbalized a lot of this at the time we visited each track and ended up writing about most of this, so the “not liked” parts might have since been corrected. Anyway, here goes, an overview of a wonderful four year racetrack Tour.

What We Liked

Scoreboards

I like scoreboards, period. Some tracks we visited didn’t have one. But I especially like scoreboards that count down. So, for a 30-lap race, the counter starts at 30. That way, everyone knows how many laps the race is and how many laps are left at any point in the program.

2/15We saw lots of young racers driving Bandolaros and Quarter Midgets across the country. This is an excellent way to introduce our youth to circle track racing. Just remember to introduce them to the proper safety equipment too. There is no car too slow or small to not need all of the things that we know will keep them safe.

Looking Out For the Kids

I love kids’ programs. Many tracks had them, but a few really stood out. At Elko, there were professional trick bike riders, a huge and modern playground, and a petting zoo. At LaCrosse Speedway, many drivers lined up their cars and kids got to ride slowly around the track for a lap or two. Some tracks had school buses they would load up and drive kids around the track and pits. If you make the kids happy, you bring families to the track.

3/15I liked to see good kids’ programs and many tracks were up to the task. At LaCrosse, teams volunteered to take youngsters for rides around the track before the night’s racing got started. This was a hugely successful program and one every track should consider. The smiles on the faces of the kids and parents told the whole story.

Short Programs

Every race night needs to end around 10 p.m. so the kids can get home and go to bed. Long programs that run past midnight are never good and cause people to not come back.

4/15We didn’t attend many big events opting for more normal race nights to see how the track worked with the regular shows. The World 100 at Eldora was one exception. Here we see the drivers getting a buzz cut for charity. Good for them.

Family Sections

I like family sections where smoking and drinking is not allowed. That way, you can bring your small children and not have to worry about them hearing crude language or breathing cigarette smoke.

Speedway Security

Speaking about late nights, good security at the track is essential. We usually see where tracks will hire local law enforcement to attend the races and keep order. One surprise, at a very well known Texas track, was the complete absence of security for a huge Modified race where things got out of hand late in the night and some of the facilities were destroyed.

5/15Every track should be required to have security on hand to take care of any situation that might crop up. We attended a major race at a major racetrack that didn’t have any security and trouble broke out. Don’t let that happen to you.

Good Announcers Make the Show

They make the show work. It can be a big difference in repeat attendance. At Southside Speedway, the announcer for the opening night we attended was a popular local radio DJ. He promoted the races, for free, during his shows the weeks before the track opened and the stands were filled. He did a great job announcing the races that night too. He probably was paid well, at least we hope so.

Mandatory H-and-N Rules

I like for tracks to have a mandatory head-and-neck restraint rule for all classes. You knew that was coming. I have many photos of youngsters putting on their HANS or other devices before climbing into their Legends cars or Street Stocks. Those parents are doing the right thing.

Great Victory Lanes

Cool Victory Lanes like the one we saw at the Dells Raceway Park make winning that much more special. It was super modern, placed outside the track next to the grandstands and accessible to the fans after each race. That way, the next race can get under way while the fans get photos of the previous winner and their car.

6/15Our favorite Victory Lane of all time is this one at The Dells Raceway Park owned and operated by Wayne Lensing. It’s located outside the oval and next to the main grandstands. The fans get to take photos of the winners while the next race is getting under way. This moves the program along much more efficiently.

Family Run Tracks

Families seem to work well together when operating a track and it all goes smoother. When racers own tracks, they remember how they wanted the tracks to operate when they were racers only. From what we have seen, the racer-owned and -operated tracks have better run programs overall.

7/15We liked to see corporations get involved with local racing. Bond Auto Parts in Vermont and New Hampshire was one such company and we saw its support at several different tracks while we were in the area.

Clean Tracks

I like clean facilities and the ladies like clean restrooms, at least that is what I heard. I saw both ends of this spectrum. There were really dirty and unpainted tracks we visited where we were told the promoters put nothing back into the track. Then there were others where they looked brand-new although they were many tens of years old.

Elko, Stateline, The Dells, Montana Raceway Park, Rocky Mountain, Wenatchee, Bowman Gray, Dillon, Eldora, Motordrome, New Egypt, Mohawk, and Thunder Road are examples of tracks we saw that really kept the grounds and facilities in top condition. And some of these are very old tracks.

Good Food

Some tracks just had much better food than others. At Motordrome, the track prepared home-cooked meals like roast beef and vegetables and served them in closed top Styrofoam dinner plates for those who came straight from work to the races on Friday night. Other tracks had terrible food that we were warned about before hand by the race teams.

Spy in The Sky

I like the use of video cameras placed around the track like at Kalamazoo Speedway. They had eight cameras placed so that you could see from every angle the action on the track. If a driver made a mistake on-track, the replay usually answered the questions after the races were over. The view from inside the car is usually much different than from outside.

8/15Kalamazoo has installed eight video cameras around the track at specific locations to capture the action. When an incident happens, and someone is dissatisfied with the tech official’s decisions, he can review the video after the event and usually see a much different picture than what they had imagined from the confines of the driver seat.

Free Admission

Tracks need to have a free admission day where all fans are admitted without charge. Viking Speedway did that when we were there and it was a big hit. A sponsor paid the track what was close to what would have been taken in, and the track still made money on drinks and food. It was cool seeing people arrive and walk right in through open gates. Many of those who were first time fans ended up coming back again.

9/15Free admission sounds like a plan for bankruptcy, but it worked at Viking Speedway in Alexandria, Minnesota. The local corn farmers association paid the cost of admission for the fans and all they had to do was show up and walk right in. It was great. And the track still made even more money on drink and food sales. Many of the first time attendees came back the following week.

Underdog Winners

I like it when a driver new to dirt racing beats full-blown Dirt Late Model cars with a crate motor car. A kid at Crossville, Tennessee, who used to run asphalt drove a crate motor-powered car, ran his race straight ahead like on asphalt, or actually two 25-lappers, and beat out two full-built motored Late Models by a long shot.

I asked, “Where did you learn to drive on dirt like that?” He explained that he had only run on asphalt tracks and he didn’t know any other way to drive.

Covered Grandstands

We saw covered grandstands in the Northeast and Midwest mostly. When the roof meets the back of the grandstands, it keeps the dust from coming onto the fans. It’s strange to watch, but if the winds are coming at the stands at a dirt track, and it is dry and dusty, when the cloud of dust rolls toward the stands, it stops because it has to go over the roof to continue. The fans stay relatively dust free.

Red Flag Cautions

One rule we saw at Riverside Speedway was a good departure from the norm. During a big four-cylinder Street Stock race, if there was need for a caution, they red flagged the race, and everyone stopped where they were on the track. The mess was cleaned up and when the green flag waived, everyone got going again. It moved the program along and didn’t penalize a good car that had gotten a lead over an opponent.

Revived Racetracks

I really like to see where a track that had been abandoned has been revived and rebuilt by someone who has a passion for racing. Salina Speedway was one such place. It lay dormant for some five years before being reclaimed. In just two years, it was made a success and transformed into a viable business.

Old Time Racers

I have enjoyed seeing restored race cars racing again. These cars from the ’40s, ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s really do run well and the organizers put on a good show wherever they go. We saw these cars racing at Unity Raceway in Maine and across the county at Stateline and Douglas County Speedways. We were treated to a luncheon by the Old Time Racers of Oregon when we visited Douglas.

Huge Crowds

We didn’t really make any effort to attend big shows with a few exceptions. Eldora has to be seen to be believed. It’s the greatest show in short track racing. Upwards of 30,000 people attend the World 100 each year and we were there. Bowman Gray had a usual Saturday night show that drew more than 17,000 spectators. That was fun to see. And Southside filled the stands on opening night, something the two sister owners couldn’t explain. These were exceptions though, unfortunately.

10/15Huge crowds were a rarity and this was not a college football game. It was Boman Gray Stadium on a regular Saturday afternoon with a sellout of 17,000-plus, standing room only crowd. Everything about this program was top notch.

Multi-Use Facilities

I like to see tracks where the grounds were used for other revenue generating events. Sandia Motorsports Park, home of the asphalt NAPA Speedway, our destination, had facilities for moto-x, road racing, dirt track, quarter midgets, drifting, and radio controlled cars. On the day we were there, four of those were running. Heartland Park is another multi-use facility with a large road racing track and a dragstrip. Rocky Mountain Raceways has the asphalt oval, a dragstrip, and a moto-x track.

Special Programs

There are many big race programs at most tracks around the country, but some of those events stand out, like the one at Montana Raceway Park called the G.E.T. Rich 212. This event was named after the grandmother of the track owner and offered cash payouts on the front straight after the race and a 1-ounce gold bar to the top three finishers.

11/15Talk about special events, the G.E.T. Rich 212 was a special Late Model race run at Montana Raceway Park and paid cash to the entire field on the front straight immediately after the race. They also awarded one of these 1-ounce gold bars to the top three finishers.

Multi-Tracks in One

I especially like to see a track with several sized racing ovals available. At most tracks like that, there is one big oval and a smaller oval in front of the main grandstand. At Evergreen, there were three tracks and one for Figure 8 racing, which reminds me, I love Figure 8 racing too.

Gentleman’s Tap-Out Rule

This one came up late in our Tour in 2013. We heard about the Gentleman’s Tap-Out Rule whereby if an altercation occurs, the one who caused the problem “accidentally,” is allowed to claim responsibility and go to the rear on the restart. That way, anyone who didn’t cause the “accident” can continue in the position they were before all heck broke loose.

12/15This is our favorite pit sign. It’s self-explanatory.

What We Didn’t Like

Slow Shows

Running races well past 11 or 12 o’clock does nobody any good. And most of the time, there is a lot of time wasted between races for no apparent reason. These programs can be run quicker, it just takes someone to ramrod the show.

Misplaced Flagstands

At a couple of tracks, evidently the tracks were shortened from one end and the track management never moved the flagstand. At Cherokee, the stand was way down toward Turn 1. On normal laps, the Late Models would lift way before the flagstand, but on the final lap going for the checker, if two cars were racing for position, they would have to overdrive the corner and barely hang on going into Turn 1.

13/15Columbus Speedway allowed teams to construct viewing towers along the back stretch of this dirt track for corporate entertainment. I like to call them redneck sky boxes and that is a compliment.

I have a suggestion: If you spend the time and money to move a whole end of the track, why not take a little more effort and move the flagstand to the middle of the new straightaway?

Scoreboards That Count Up

I had a media person for a new track in California “argue” with me about using a countdown lap timer. He said the couple of newspaper reporters who came to the track to write about the races needed for the laps to count up. So, a couple thousand fans and the racers are inconvenienced by two writers who can either subtract, or change the way they write the events. Instead of “With 20 laps completed, car number…”, they could write, “With 19 laps to go, car number…” and all is solved. How hard could that be?

Fighting/Bad Sportsmanship

I don’t like fighting. It’s not that I haven’t been in fights, but at some point we grow up and realize it’s a crime to strike someone, even if they need it. Adults fighting sends the wrong message to the kids and says that we are not mature or have enough character to admit we are wrong or accept that others might make mistakes.

Hey, I don’t mind seeing someone mad. Things happen to piss us off at times and we need to verbalize that anger. Most of the incidents I saw at the racetracks we visited were verbal and not physical. Things can get talked out and the one who is at fault almost always knows it.

Late Night Trains

I hate it when we camp at a track that is located next to a major railway through the Midwest and where one passes, and blows the horn, every half hour on the half hour. It happened more than once. It was no one’s fault, we just didn’t like it.

Round Racetracks

Not much to say here, but I don’t really care for round racetracks. Hey, they are there and must be used, but who thought up a design where there are no straights?

Flea Markets and County Fairs

At our very first stop on the road for the entire Tour, we camped in the parking area outside Lanier Speedway the night before the race. In the morning we heard loud music outside our motorhome and when I looked, an entire flea market was setup around our bus. No one told us anything about that. It was interesting.

At Fonda Speedway, the track manager insisted we move our bus from the front of the grandstand parking area back to along the back fence after the races were over. She never explained why and we were accommodating. Then at 6 a.m. the next morning, I awoke to the sound of the carnival crews setting up for the county fair that began that day between us and the exit gate. We had to hurry up and pack it out of there or stay the week.

Hot Race Days

We attended races during the summer where the temperatures were in the 100s-plus. It was 103 at Rocky Mountain, State Park and Meridian Speedways. On our trip from Salt Lake City to Meridian, we changed our plans and stayed in Stanley, Idaho, for the week, high up in the Sawtooth Mountains, where the temps. were in the mid-70s as opposed to upwards of 105 in Meridian.

14/15It was very hot at times during our four-year Tour. At State Park Speedway, it was upwards of 103 degrees and the track setup water sprinklers for the kids to run through. If I hadn’t had my camera in my hand, I might have been tempted. It was brutal. Rocky Mountain and Meridian were equally hot.

Dead Racetracks

I don’t like to see or hear about racetracks that die. They usually die a slow death and there should be an autopsy of sorts to find out why they die. That way, we can learn more about how tracks get sick and die. Then maybe we can prevent future deaths. We uncovered a track in Vermont called Northern Speedway, one of the very first asphalt tracks in the region. It had died and grown over, but had recently been uncovered and the grounds restored.

It was easy to see why this track didn’t survive. It was very short and narrow and with the car counts growing back in the 1950s, there just wasn’t enough room to race. So, future tracks were built larger to accommodate more cars and to make the racing better.

Conclusion

So there you go. I have listed most of the likes and dislikes we found along the way on our fantastic Tour. We hope that we have shed some light on why some things work in short track racing and why some things don’t. We can all learn from the successes as well as failures of those who came before us. And in that effort, we hope to have contributed something to help grow our sport.

I especially like scoreboards that count down...that way everyone knows how many laps are left in the race

15/15We saw lots of car bodies that look like new model street cars and the fans relate to that look much better we believe. This car was a Sportsman class car with a Buick frame, a GM engine, and a Mustang body the driver put together himself using current model fenders, nose, and more.